The Weeknd Opens Up About What Black Lives Matter Means to Him

The Weeknd takes two separate covers for V MAN 36, photographed by Inez & Vinoodh and styled by Mel Ottenberg.

Here’s what the 26-year-old entertainer shared with the mag:

On sobriety: “Unfortunately, a lot of great things have happened when I was f*cked up, and sometimes I ask myself whether any of it would have been possible if I was sober. People might look at it as a sad reality, but when I perform it, the people sing it with so much joy. That’s what really matters to me.”

On supportingBeyonce‘s feminist movement: “It feels great seeing the character of a powerful woman be sexy, yet take matters into her own hands and not feel so helpless.

On what Black Lives Matter means to him: “I promised myself that I would never tweet or talk about politics and focus on the music, but I was just so bewildered that we lost more of our people to these senseless police shootings. It’s hard to wrap my head around the fact that there are people who can’t or won’t see what Black Lives Matter is trying to accomplish. I wish I could make music about politics. I feel like it’s such an art and a talent that I admire tremendously, but when I step into the studio I step out of the real world, and it’s therapeutic. It’s an escape, but recently it’s been very hard to ignore, and it’s also been very distracting. Maybe you’ll hear it in my voice, but it is not my forté.”